Softball Game Preview: Mira Mesa Marauders vs. Canyon Hills Rattlers

The Mira Mesa Marauders will head out to square off against the Canyon Hills Rattlers at 4:00 p.m. on Thursday. Mira Mesa will be strutting in after a victory while Canyon Hills will be coming in after a defeat.

Mira Mesa will roll into the match after a wild two-game stretch: they only put up one run on Thursday, then bounced right back against Madison on Tuesday. The Marauders' pitcher stepped up to hand the Warhawks an 18-0 shutout. Considering the Marauders' hitters had been struggling lately, the high-scoring outing was a much-needed turnaround.

Brooklyn Haug made a big impact no matter where she played. She didn't allow a single earned run and allowed only two hits over five innings pitched. She has been consistent for a while: she hasn't given up more than two walks in nine consecutive appearances. She was also stellar in the batter's box, going 2-for-3 with three RBI and two runs.

In other batting news, the team relied heavily on Aria Phruksukarn, who went 2-for-3 with one home run, five RBI, and two runs. Another player making a difference was Evelyn Stabile, who went 1-for-3 with two runs and two RBI.

Mira Mesa was getting hits left and right and finished the game having posted a batting average of .571. They are 5-1 when they post a batting average of .375 or better.

The scorekeeper got an easy start on Tuesday as neither Canyon Hills nor Scripps Ranch made it on the board until the seventh inning. The Rattlers fell just short of the Falcons by a score of 2-1. The Rattlers' loss signaled the end of their four-game winning streak.

Mira Mesa is on a roll lately: they've won seven of their last nine contests. That's provided a nice bump to their 12-13 record this season. The wins came thanks in part to their hitting performance across that stretch, as they averaged 7.8 runs over those games. As for Canyon Hills, their defeat dropped their record down to 16-8.

Mira Mesa skirted past Canyon Hills 5-4 when the teams last played two weeks ago. Will the Marauders repeat their success, or do the Rattlers have a new game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.